Willard Robison, music · Dedette Lee Hill, lyrics · Introduced by Larry Clinton and His Orchestra, 1938
Old Folks is a gentle 1938 ballad by Willard Robison, with words by Dedette Lee Hill. Its tune has a folk-song feel, laid-back and a little bluesy, that suits slow, quiet playing. Miles Davis recorded it in 1961, and Charlie Parker and Sarah Vaughan did before him.
The path starts with Sarah Vaughan singing the song in 1956, then goes back to Charlie Parker's 1953 record with a vocal group. Three bands follow, with Lou Donaldson, Kenny Dorham and Miles Davis, then Etta Jones sings it with guitar. Two 1989 trios, Keith Jarrett's and Pat Metheny's, close the path.
8 recordings, 1953 to 1989 · Play all 8 on YouTube ↗
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Sarah Vaughan · 1956 · Soul jazz
Sassy
Sarah Vaughan recorded it in New York in April 1956 for her album Sassy on EmArcy, with an orchestra arranged and conducted by Hal Mooney.
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Play 1 to 4: , , , . Smaller version: one to a bar, Em7♭5, Dm7, B♭maj7, Am7♭5.
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Charlie Parker · 1953 · Bebop
“Old Folks (Take 9 / Master)”, Bird: The Complete Charlie Parker on Verve
Parker recorded it at Fulton Recording in New York on 25 May 1953 with the Dave Lambert Singers and an orchestra conducted by Gil Evans. Take 9 became the master.
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Play 5 to 8 of the first A part: , , , Gm7 C7 . Smaller version: one to a bar, Gm7, Am7♭5, G7, Gm7.
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Lou Donaldson Quintet · 1957 · Hard bop
Wailing with Lou
Lou Donaldson recorded it with Donald Byrd and a at Van Gelder Studio in Hackensack on 27 January 1957. Blue Note issued it on a single with Caravan and on the album Wailing with Lou.
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Play 17 to 20, the start of the : , , , . Smaller version: one to a bar, Fmaj7, Cm7, B♭maj7, E♭7.
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Kenny Dorham · 1959 · Hard bop
Quiet Kenny
Kenny Dorham recorded it for the album Quiet Kenny at Van Gelder Studio in Englewood Cliffs on 13 November 1959, with Tommy Flanagan, Paul Chambers and Arthur Taylor. New Jazz issued the album.
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Play 21 to 24, the end of the : , , , . Smaller version: one to a bar, Fmaj7, Dm7, G7, Gm7.
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Miles Davis Sextet · 1961 · Hard bop, Modal jazz
Someday My Prince Will Come
Miles Davis recorded it in March 1961 at Columbia's 30th Street Studio in New York for Someday My Prince Will Come. It is the only studio record by his quintet that features Hank Mobley.
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Play 13 to 16, where the first half of the tune ends: , , C7, . Smaller version: one to a bar, Gm7, Am7♭5, G7, F6.
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Etta Jones · 1963 · Vocal
Love Shout
Etta Jones recorded it at Van Gelder Studio in Englewood Cliffs on 4 February 1963 for her Prestige album Love Shout. Kenny Burrell plays guitar, with George Tucker on bass and Jimmie Smith on drums.
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Compare the two endings of the A part. First time: 7 and 8 are and . Second time: bars 15 and 16 are G7 C7 and . Play both and notice which one sounds finished.
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Keith Jarrett Trio · 1989 · Contemporary jazz, Post-bop
Standards in Norway
The Keith Jarrett Trio played it at Konserthuset in Oslo on 7 October 1989. ECM issued the concert as Standards in Norway in 1995.
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Play one full A part, 9 to 16, the version with the second ending: , , , , , Am7♭5 D7♭9, C7, . Smaller version: one to a bar, Em7♭5, Dm7, B♭maj7, Am7♭5, Gm7, Am7♭5, G7, F6.
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Pat Metheny Trio · 1989 · Post-bop, Contemporary jazz
Question and Answer
Pat Metheny recorded it with bassist Dave Holland and drummer Roy Haynes at The Power Station in New York on 21 December 1989. Geffen issued it on Question and Answer in 1990.
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Play the whole tune with one to a . Each A part is , , , , , Am7♭5, , then Gm7 the first time or the second and third times. The (bars 17 to 24) is , , B♭maj7, , Fmaj7, Dm7, G7, Gm7. That is a lot at once, so start with one A part.
Willard Robison writes the music and Dedette Lee Hill the words in 1938. Larry Clinton's orchestra, with singer Bea Wain, introduces it that year, and according to JazzStandards.com the record reaches No. 4 on the charts.
Charlie Parker records it in 1953 with the Dave Lambert Singers and an orchestra conducted by Gil Evans. In 1956 Sarah Vaughan sings it with Hal Mooney's orchestra.
Miles Davis records it in March 1961 for Someday My Prince Will Come, with Hank Mobley on tenor saxophone. In February 1963 Etta Jones sings it with Kenny Burrell on guitar for her album Love Shout.
Dexter Gordon records it in Copenhagen in May 1974 with Niels-Henning Ørsted Pedersen on bass, and SteepleChase issues it on The Apartment in 1975.
The Keith Jarrett Trio plays it live in Oslo in October 1989, and ECM issues the concert in 1995. In December 1989 Pat Metheny records it with Dave Holland and Roy Haynes.
3 more, from 1938 to 1974. Tap a cover to play it here.
1938
Old Folks
According to JazzStandards.com, Larry Clinton's orchestra introduced the song in 1938, with Bea Wain singing, and the record reached No. 4 on the charts.
1958
Montgomeryland
Wes Montgomery recorded it in Los Angeles on 18 April 1958 with Harold Land on tenor saxophone and his brothers Buddy on piano and Monk on electric bass. Pacific Jazz issued it on Montgomeryland.
1974 · Post-bop
The Apartment
Dexter Gordon recorded it in Copenhagen on 24 May 1974 with bassist Niels-Henning Ørsted Pedersen. SteepleChase issued it on The Apartment in 1975.
The tune's layout, its keys and the chord chart, for anyone who wants to play along.
The chart in iReal Pro has four parts of 8 , 32 in all, in . Each A opens on and , then , , and Am7♭5 D7♭9 in bars 3 to 6. The first time through, bar 7 is and bar 8 is Gm7 C7 , which leads back to the top. The second and third times, bar 7 is G7 C7 and bar 8 is . The , bars 17 to 24, runs , Cm7 F7, B♭maj7, E♭7, Fmaj7 Em7♭5 , Dm7, G7 and Gm7 C7 Fm7 B♭7. The areas shown are a rough reading of the chart: the visit , B♭ and before settling on F.
Chart from iReal Pro's Jazz 1460 playlist, contributed by its users.